“The tribal council cast its final vote before it left the island. Only one person knows who the winner is,” declares Paolo Bediones, host of the much-talked about “Survivor Philippines” franchise.
Paolo swears that this one person is not himself. “The voting result is heavily guarded. Everything will be revealed—to be aired live—on the last day of the show,” he tells Inquirer Entertainment.
Paolo and a team of over 90 members flew to Ko Tarutao, also known as Devil’s Island, in Satun Province, Thailand in July for the popular reality game show. The prize money, at P3 million, is the biggest in reality game show history in the country.
Eighteen contestants were selected for the show, which premieres tonight.
What was the worst thing that happened while you were on the island? Did anyone suffer life-threatening injuries?
We were there during the monsoon season so maraming nagkasakit. The worst case was someone having to be rushed to the hospital. But that was related more to the environment than to the show itself.
Ako naman, I had a bad case of niknik bites. Sand flies. It was very hard to keep myself from scratching. You can just imagine how bad it was for the castaways. Their bodies were ravaged by all insects.
You were more than the host of the show. We were told that, on the island, you even led the reading of the Scriptures.
I wanted to serve as a kuya to all of them. The people were getting lonely and homesick. I needed to encourage them, tell them everything would be okay. There were some of us who had doubts na matatapos pa namin ang show. I was very glad they were very receptive to [Bible reading]. When I first suggested it, akala ko mga five or six lang ang sasali; eventually naging 17. It was very encouraging. We got to know more about each other’s lives.
We also heard you tried some of the challenges ahead of the castaways to test the safety?
That’s one of the reasons my work was hard. I had to consider all the details. The medical team, the challenge team, the program manager and I assessed each situation. We got into arguments that led to a lot of growth as a team.
Was this team the same group that worked with you in “Extra Challenge?” I would assume they already knew what to do.
Yes and no. Yes, they were our riggers for “Extra Challenge” and now, for “Tok Tok Tok.” We’re familiar with them, but we had never done anything like this before. On the island, we only had a number of locations for challenges—about five or six—and we had 26 challenges. Can you imagine how hard that was? While you’re doing a challenge in one area, you’re setting up in another. Everyday we really had something to do.
How did you communicate with your loved ones while there?
In the beginning, I already told them that communication would be very limited. It was very important that they understood the situation—sometimes may signal, sometimes wala. What was important was for them to know I was safe. In case something happened to me there, someone would immediately inform them. I got to speak to them once in a while. Sometimes I got to send an e-mail, which was the most effective way.
What was it like when you first came back here?
Before we left for the island, I had separation anxiety. When I arrived back here, it was very surreal. I was like, “Where’s the sand? Where’s the dump truck that we rode every single day?” You get used to a certain way of living. More than anything, that’s what I learned on the island—that life is really so simple.
“Survivor” host Jeff Probst said a certain theme emerges each season. What do you think became your theme?
Since its the first season ever, it was more of the conflict within families and among friends. I say family because sometimes, when the tribes were together in the camp, they were like family; Sometimes like barkada. The conflict would arise when they reached a point when they would have to let go of a “family member” or a “friend.” How were they to do that? Who should they trust?
Castaway Productions gave its go-signal for a second season. Would you like to still be a part of it?
Oh I’d do it again and again—no question about that. It was really one of the best three months of my life, make that seven—from preparing for it till we completed shooting. It’s been one great ride. In the coming months, we’ll be doing a lot of on-ground promos.
The producer of this show imposes very specific rules. Can you share some of them?
There are four ways you can get out of the game. No. 1, if you quit. No. 2, if you are examined by the medical team after an injury and it is decided that your situation would be aggravated if you continued with the game, or it would affect other contestants. The medical team has the authority to take you out. If you are brought to the hospital and fail to return within 24 hours, you’re out. The third way is if you get voted off by the Tribal Council. The fourth way is if you become violent at any point during the competition, like if you hit others with a closed fist or slap or kick anyone. I had to look out for this as a host.
You were even made to sign a confidentiality contract.
Yes. All who are witnesses to the things that happened on the show were made to sign a confidentiality agreement. For example, the pictures taken on the island cannot be posted for the next three years on any Internet site. The castaways are not allowed to divulge anything that happened that hasn’t been aired. If any information comes out and it is verified that they leaked information, they will be sued for the entire cost of the production. The contestants are also asked to refrain from being seen in public together for the duration of the airing.
On the island, you had very minimal supplies.
It was very important for the castaways to become dependent on one another. All that they really had were a pair of underwear. As for their shelter, there were very interesting ways that these people made their homes on the island. For food, they had regular rations of rice. But none of them were able to make fire on their own. With no fire, how could they cook?
Fire is one of the rewards. Rewards vary from food rewards to things that would make you feel comfortable in camp, to fire, to water for bathing and drinking.
Describe Devil’s Island.
Its an old political prisoner’s camp. When the prisoners escaped, they turned into pirates and started to loot all the ships that were docked there. Several years later, it turned out to be a rich land in terms of wild life. The government of Thailand decided to turn it into a wild life preserve. This means that the animals there are really, err, wild. We’re talking about king cobras, pythons, fish snakes, sea snakes—some have venom, some don’t. There are monkeys that raided the camp regularly. There are different kinds of fish ... wild boar, bayawak ... and crocodile. Yes, it’s a fun-filled island (laughs).
Which island in the Philippines is similar to it?
I think Palawan has a very similar terrain and wild life. A lot of people have posted questions in websites like, “Bakit hindi sa Pilipinas ginawa? Wala bang magandang islands dito?” I think what most people don’t understand is that the franchise agreement states that it has to be held in a country that’s not your own. This is to level the playing field. What if we held it in Palawan and it turned out that there’s someone from the contestants who is from Palawan? Lugi naman.
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